Would you pay $70 for someone to procure for you, a document you can easily obtain yourself at a fraction of the cost? If you’re stupid, you just might.

My landlord/roommate received an unsolicited notification today from the National Deed Servicing Co. (or something like that – the letter is already firmly lodged in the circular file). It said something to the effect of “It is recommended that all homeowner’s maintain a certified true copy of their title deed.” The letter proceeded to list the register number and date of recording, and indicated that the NDSC would be happy to obtain a certified copy from the County Register of Deeds for a fee of $69.50.

Now, my roommate/landlord is not an idiot. The first thing he did was ask me, “Didn’t I get a deed when I bought my house?” Of course he did – which deed was immediately sent to the County for recording. And he recalls (although unsure of where he placed it) going down to the County building to pick it up after it was recorded.

But I also told him that in the event that he doesn’t have one, the letter contains everything he needs to get a copy by himself: the register/instrument number and the date of recording. And to get one himself would cost $17.

If the world weren’t full of abject morons, there would be no market for pseudo-scams like this.